“15 Assists, Not 34 Goals”…Son Heung-min’s Assists Tie Vela’s LAFC Single-Season Record

Son Heung-min’s 1 goal and 2 assists against Austin on October 14 brought his season total to 15 assists, matching Vela’s LAFC single-season regular-season assist record. This is separate from the 34 goals.

Translated from Korean with AI assistance. Read the original. Sources and original publication dates are retained.

Three-line summary

Son Heung-min recorded 1 goal and 2 assists in the October 14 match against Austin FC, which LAFC won 3-1.
With 15 assists this season, he matched the LAFC single-season regular-season assist record that Vela set in 2019.
The record he caught is not Vela’s 34 goals or his MVP award but the 15 assists, and he is one short of a new record.

15. This is the number of regular-season assists Son has recorded for LAFC this season. However, the record he matched is not Vela’s 34 goals, the league record from 2019. It is the number Vela also recorded in the same season: 15 assists, the LAFC single-season regular-season assist record.

Son Heung-min: 1 goal, 2 assists vs. Austin, 7th, 22nd and 27th minutes of the second half

Assist scene from the Austin match, 22nd minute of the second half / Illustrative image for reference

The record came on October 14, 2026 local time in the U.S., and on the 15th in Korea. Hankook Ilbo reported that LAFC beat Austin FC 3-1 that day, and Son Heung-min recorded 1 goal and 2 assists in the match. His first assist came in the 7th minute of the second half, setting up Bouanga’s opening goal.

His second assist involved some luck. In the 22nd minute of the second half, a ball kicked by the opposing goalkeeper struck Son’s body and rolled in front of Bouanga, who turned it into the winning goal. This play was also credited as an official assist. Five minutes later, in the 27th minute of the second half, Son scored the clinching goal himself.

The LAFC official match report states that when the match ended, Son’s regular-season assists had reached 15, matching Vela’s club single-season record for assists. Right after this match, Son also took sole first place in MLS assists (as of 15:00 on October 15, 2026, per Hankook Ilbo report).

Vela’s 34 goals and 15 assists, alongside his 2019 MVP season

Carlos Vela 2019 season record / Illustrative image for reference

Vela’s 2019 season, the point of comparison, is a season that stands in MLS history. According to the official MLS announcement, Vela played 31 regular-season matches that year and recorded 34 goals and 15 assists, and MLS announced him as MVP on November 4. The 34 goals were a new league single-season record at the time.

Vela 2019 vs. Son Heung-min 2026 regular-season stats

Category	Vela (2019)	Son Heung-min (2026)
Goals	34	7
Assists	15	15
Goal contributions	49	22
Tallied as of	Season end (31 matches)	End of Austin match, Oct. 14, 2026

Laid out in a table, the gap is clear. Assists are tied at 15, but goals are 34 versus 7, a 27-goal difference. Vela’s figures are final season totals, while Son’s figures were tallied mid-season, which is another difference.

Reports also differed on the numbers. In an October 15 report, Money Today listed Son’s assists right after the Austin match as 14. The LAFC official report, Hankook Ilbo and Sports Kyunghyang confirmed 15, and this article follows the official tally.

Son Heung-min is 1 assist from a new record, and Messi also has 15 assists

Three days after the Austin match, on October 17 local time, LAFC drew 1-1 with NYCFC (according to the LAFC official report). The following day, the 18th, AS reported that Lionel Messi had also reached 15 assists. Because matches were played after the Austin game, the “sole first place in assists” immediately after that match cannot be treated as the current ranking. We have not included the latest league assist standings because we could not confirm a reference time.

On the 19th, local time, AS USA’s reporter Rodrigo Serrano wrote that Son is tied with Vela at 15 assists, under the headline “Son Heung-min Close to Breaking Carlos Vela’s Record.” Serrano projected that if Son adds assists in the remaining regular-season matches, he could set a new club single-season record.

What has been confirmed so far is a 15-assist tie. To set a sole new record, 1 more assist is needed, and it must come in the remaining regular-season matches to count. The record follows MLS official tallies, so assists from the playoffs or other competitions are not added.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Did Son also catch up to Vela’s 34-goal record?

No. The record Son tied is Vela’s LAFC single-season regular-season record of 15 assists. Son’s regular-season goals as of the end of the Austin match are 7, a 27-goal gap from Vela’s 34.

Q. How much is Son Heung-min’s salary?

According to the MLS Players Association’s 2026 spring salary data, Son’s annual base salary is $10,368,750 and his average annual guaranteed compensation is $11,152,852 (as of April 16, 2026). Guaranteed compensation is an indicator that adds signing bonuses and guaranteed bonuses to base salary and converts the total to a yearly average; it differs from total income, which includes advertising revenue.

Rank	Player	Average annual guaranteed compensation (USD)	Club
1	Lionel Messi	28,333,333	Inter Miami
2	Son Heung-min	11,152,852	LAFC
3	Rodrigo De Paul	9,688,320	Inter Miami
4	Irving Rosano	9,333,333	San Diego FC
5	Miguel Almirón	7,871,000	Atlanta United

Q. Until when does Son Heung-min’s LAFC contract run?

According to reports from Newsis and Yonhap News, the base contract runs through 2027. It also includes a 2028 extension option and an additional extension option through June 2029.

Related official sites

LAFC official website — match schedule and official match reports
MLS official player profile for Son Heung-min — season goals and assists based on MLS official tallies
MLS official website — league standings and assist rankings
MLS Players Association official salary data — raw base salary and guaranteed compensation data by player